pizza stuffed peppers

I made pizza stuffed peppers last Tuesday and they turned out way better than the first time I tried them, mostly because I didn’t skip the sauce layer on the bottom of the pan. You get all the pizza flavor but you’re eating a pepper instead of bread, which honestly just feels less heavy after a long day.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• The turkey doesn’t dry out because you keep it moving in the pan and don’t overcook it
• Baking covered first means the peppers actually get tender instead of staying crunchy in weird spots
• That sauce layer on the bottom of the dish does double duty—keeps things from sticking and gives you extra sauce to spoon over when you serve
• You can use whatever pizza toppings you’ve got sitting around and it still works
• The cheese gets those brown bubbly spots on top if you leave it uncovered long enough
• Takes 55 minutes start to finish which is reasonable for a weeknight

The Story Behind This Recipe

I wanted pizza on a Tuesday but I also had six bell peppers that were gonna go bad if I didn’t use them. I’d made a stuffed peppers recipe before with rice and tomato sauce but this time I just thought about what I actually wanted to eat, which was pizza. Ground turkey was on sale and I figured it’d be less greasy than beef or sausage. The first batch I made I didn’t put sauce on the bottom of the pan and the peppers stuck really bad, so now I always start with that half cup spread out. It’s not fancy but it works and I’ve made it three times since then.

What You Need

You’ll need 6 bell peppers with their tops cut off and all the seeds scraped out. Any color works but I use whatever’s cheapest, which is usually red or green. Ground turkey is what I always go with now because it doesn’t leave that greasy film on top of everything like beef does. Get the regular kind, not extra lean, or it’ll taste dry.

For seasoning the meat you need Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and black pepper. I just use the dried Italian seasoning blend from the store because it’s got everything already mixed. Pizza sauce goes in two places—half a cup on the bottom of your baking dish so things don’t stick, then more spooned over each pepper after you stuff them. I buy the jar kind, not the can.

Mozzarella cheese is the main topping and you want the shredded stuff, not fresh. Fresh mozzarella has too much water and makes everything soupy. Then add whatever pizza toppings you’ve got—I did olives and pepperoni but mushrooms or sausage work too. Cooking spray for the dish and a splash of olive oil for cooking the turkey. Fresh parsley at the end is optional, I skip it half the time.

You’ll also need a 13 x 9 inch baking dish and foil to cover it.

How to Make Pizza Stuffed Peppers

Turn your oven to 400 degrees F first so it’s ready. Spray your 13 x 9 inch baking dish with cooking spray, then pour that half cup of pizza sauce right into the bottom and spread it around with the back of a spoon until it covers most of the surface. This step matters more than you’d think.

Get a large skillet going over medium heat with a little olive oil in there. Add your ground turkey and hit it with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and black pepper all at once. Use a wooden spoon to break up the meat as it cooks and keep it moving around the pan. It takes about 7 to 9 minutes until there’s no pink left and it’s starting to brown a little. Don’t walk away during this part or it’ll cook unevenly.

Now you fill each of those hollowed bell peppers with the cooked turkey. I just pack it in there with a spoon, doesn’t have to look neat. Spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of pizza sauce over the top of each stuffed pepper, then grab a handful of shredded mozzarella and pile it on. Add your olives or pepperoni or whatever toppings you’re using right on top of the cheese. If you’ve got extra sauce left just drizzle it around the peppers in the pan.

Cover the whole thing tightly with foil and put it in the oven for 20 minutes. You’ll start to smell it after about 15. Take the foil off—be careful because steam comes up fast—and bake it another 15 to 20 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and getting those brown spots. The peppers should feel soft when you poke them with a knife.

Let them sit for a few minutes before you serve them because they’re crazy hot right out of the oven. If you’ve got fresh parsley around you can chop some and throw it on top but honestly I forget most of the time. The sauce on the bottom of the pan gets kind of thick and concentrated, spoon that over the peppers when you plate them because it’s got all the flavor.

What I Did Wrong the First Time

First time I made this turkey stuffed peppers recipe I didn’t put any sauce on the bottom of the pan because I thought it was a waste. The peppers stuck so bad to the dish I had to scrape them out with a spatula and they fell apart. Also I used fresh mozzarella because I thought it’d be fancier and it released so much water that everything was swimming in this milky liquid by the time it came out. Now I always use the pre-shredded kind and that layer of sauce underneath, no exceptions.

pizza stuffed peppers

By Emma

Prep:

15 min

Cook:

40 min

Total:

55 min

Servings:

6 servings

Ingredients

• cooking spray
• 1/2 cup pizza sauce, divided
• olive oil
• ground turkey
• Italian seasoning
• garlic powder
• onion powder
• salt
• black pepper
• bell peppers, tops cut off and seeded
• mozzarella cheese
• olives
• pepperoni
• parsley (optional)

Method

1. 1 Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Lightly coat a 13 x 9 inch baking dish with cooking spray. Pour half a cup of pizza sauce into the bottom of the dish and spread it evenly using a spoon or spatula.
2. 2 Place a large skillet over medium heat and add a splash of olive oil. Toss in the ground turkey along with Italian seasoning, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and black pepper. Stir as the meat cooks, breaking it apart with a wooden spoon until it loses its pink color and begins to brown, about 7 to 9 minutes.
3. 3 Fill each hollowed bell pepper with the cooked turkey mixture. Ladle 2 to 3 tablespoons of pizza sauce over each pepper, then top with a good handful of shredded mozzarella cheese. Scatter your preferred pizza toppings like olives and pepperoni on top. Spread any remaining pizza sauce on the bottom of the baking dish if needed.
4. 4 Cover the pan tightly with foil and slide it into the oven. Let the peppers bake for 20 minutes. You'll hear the gentle bubbling of the sauce beneath and see the peppers begin to soften. Remove the foil carefully, exposing the cheese; continue baking for another 15 to 20 minutes until the cheese bubbles and browns slightly and the peppers yield easily to a knife.
5. 5 Allow the peppers to cool for a few minutes before serving. If you like, sprinkle fresh parsley on top for a bright finish and serve.

Nutritional information

Calories

280

Protein

30g

Carbs

10g

Fat

12g

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Tips for the Best Pizza Stuffed Peppers

Don’t pack the turkey into the peppers too tight or it gets dense and weird. Leave a little air in there and it stays light.

If your peppers are really big and thick-walled, give them 5 extra minutes covered or they’ll still have that crunchy raw texture on the edges. The thin red ones cook faster than the fat green ones so if you’re mixing colors just know that going in.

The sauce at the bottom of the pan will look thin when you spread it out but by the time everything’s done it gets thick and slightly caramelized around the edges. That’s the stuff you want on your plate. I use a rubber spatula to scrape it all up.

When you take the foil off, pull it toward you so the steam goes away from your face instead of right at you. Learned that one the hard way and it’s not fun.

If the cheese isn’t browning after 20 minutes uncovered turn on the broiler for 2 minutes but don’t walk away because it goes from brown to black in about 30 seconds.

Serving Ideas

I put one pepper on a plate and spoon that concentrated sauce from the bottom all over it, then eat it with a fork and knife like a regular meal. Sometimes I’ll throw together a quick Caesar salad with bagged romaine because the crunch is good next to the soft pepper.

Garlic bread on the side makes it feel more like actual pizza night. The cheap frozen kind works fine, I’m not making it from scratch on a Tuesday.

Leftovers I just eat cold straight from the fridge the next day for lunch which sounds gross but the flavors get even better overnight and I don’t have time to reheat stuff at work anyway.

Variations

If you want to make this turkey stuffed peppers recipe with ground beef instead it works but drain off most of the fat after you cook it or you’ll have grease floating on top of everything. Chicken sausage is good too, just squeeze it out of the casings first.

I tried a low-carb version where I added riced cauliflower to the turkey to stretch it further and honestly it was fine but not better, just more filling. You’d never know it was there though if you’re trying to sneak vegetables into someone’s dinner.

Adding a handful of cooked quinoa or rice to the turkey makes the peppers more substantial if you’ve got really hungry people to feed. It changes the texture to be more like traditional stuffed peppers though which isn’t what I’m going for most of the time.

FAQ

Can I use green peppers instead of red or yellow? Yeah green peppers work fine, they’re just slightly more bitter and take a minute or two longer to get tender. I use whatever’s cheap at the store that week.

Do I have to cover the peppers with foil? You really should for the first part or the tops will brown before the peppers cook through. The steam under the foil is what makes them soft instead of leathery.

Can I make these ahead and bake them later? You can stuff them in the morning and leave them covered in the fridge, then just add 5 minutes to the covered baking time since they’re starting cold. Don’t add the cheese until right before baking or it gets weird and congealed.

What if I don’t have Italian seasoning? Mix together some dried basil, oregano and a tiny bit of thyme if you’ve got them. If you don’t have any of that just use extra garlic powder and onion powder, it won’t taste exactly like pizza but it’ll still be good.

Can I freeze these after baking? They freeze okay but the peppers get softer and kind of mushy when you reheat them. I’ve done it when I had extras but they’re definitely better fresh or just refrigerated for a few days.

How do I reheat leftover stuffed peppers? Microwave works fine, just put a damp paper towel over the top so the pepper doesn’t dry out. Takes about 2 minutes on high for one pepper from the fridge.

Do I need to pre-cook the peppers before stuffing? Nope, that’s what the covered baking time is for. Raw peppers go straight into the pan and they cook perfectly as long as you don’t skip the foil step.

Can I use ground pork instead of turkey? Sure, ground pork would taste good and it’s got enough fat that it won’t dry out. It’ll be richer than turkey but that’s not a bad thing if you’re into it.

Why is there water pooling in my baking dish? Either your peppers released a bunch of liquid or you used fresh mozzarella instead of pre-shredded. Fresh has way too much moisture for this stuffed peppers recipe. Stick with the bagged shredded kind.

Can I make this with just cheese and no meat? You could but it’d be pretty boring honestly. Maybe add some sautéed mushrooms and onions to bulk it up if you’re skipping the turkey so there’s something substantial in there.

What’s the best way to cut the tops off the peppers? I just use a knife and cut around the stem at an angle, then pull the whole top out with the seeds attached. Way faster than trying to slice the tops off flat.

Do all the peppers have to be the same size? They don’t have to be but the smaller ones will cook faster. If you’ve got one that’s way bigger than the rest it might need an extra 5 minutes covered.

Can I use jar marinara instead of pizza sauce? Yeah that works, marinara and pizza sauce are basically the same thing. Sometimes marinara has more herbs in it which is fine for this.

How do I know when the peppers are done? Stick a knife into the thickest part of the pepper and it should slide in easy with no resistance. If it’s still firm give it another 5 minutes.

Can I add more vegetables to the turkey mixture? Diced onions or mushrooms sautéed with the turkey work great. Just make sure you cook off any liquid they release before you stuff the peppers or it gets watery.

What if my cheese isn’t browning? Your oven might run cool or the rack might be too low. Move it up one level or hit it with the broiler for a minute or two at the very end.

Can I use turkey sausage instead of ground turkey? Absolutely, turkey sausage would be even easier since it’s already seasoned. Just remove the casings and cook it the same way you’d cook ground turkey.

Do I really need the sauce on the bottom of the pan? Yeah you really do unless you want to scrub stuck pepper off your dish for 20 minutes. I learned that the first time I made these and it was annoying.

How long do leftovers last in the fridge? About 3 or 4 days in a sealed container. After that the peppers start getting slimy and I wouldn’t eat them.

Can I double this recipe? You’d need two baking dishes since 12 peppers won’t fit in one 13 x 9 inch pan. Everything else just doubles straight across.